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Matthew Cauthon
Mat is a Shinigami of the Gotei 13. Appearance Mat generally wears dark colored clothing. He prefers deep green pants, and a mid length coat of the same color for any excurisons out to the forested areas of the Seireitei. He generally wears two belts. The first is for holding his pants up, while the second holds a small belt pouch with medical supplies and emergency money inside of it. Usually Mat will wear a white shirt under his coat, and that is normally less than half buttoned. The final two pieces of his wardrobe are a silver pendant with a fox head on the face of it, and the black silk scarf that hides the scar that he somehow retained after his death from the attempt to hang him. Personality Mat is generally the playful sort. He enjoys tossing the dice, and playing at tile games, virtually anything where he can gamble. When on duty the man is much more circumspect about his duties and his personality could be described as goal oriented. He tends to focus on the task at hand to the exclusion of anything else. Mat generally holds himself to a high standard. If he gives his word he keeps it, and that's all there is to it, no matter what is required to fulfill his promises. He doesn't expect this of others, but someone that keeps their word would be held in high esteem. Mat has an easy time befriending new people, as long as they understand that there is a time and a place for friendship, as well as duty. He wouldn't want his duties interrupted by someone that should be fulfilling their own, but he's happy to pull pranks or go for a drink on his off hours. History Mat Cauthon was born to a family that raised and bred horses in Europe in the 1300s AD. Through his childhood he worked with his father to raise and break horses for the nobles and wealthy merchants in the area while gaining a reputation for pulling pranks and being a bit of a jokester. When his father arranged his marriage to the daughter of a merchant, he was very upset. The pairing meant he would have to leave the family business and wouldn’t be able to do the one thing he really loved, working with horses. Mat decided that he would run from home, and a week before the wedding he packed up his belongings and left with only his horse, and his staff. In the months that followed his betrothed’s father sent more than one group of men to bring Mat back, he saw it as a stain on his family that Mat had run. Mat however was an expert with his staff and easily sent the mercenaries running back home. After arriving in a much drier land to the south and east Mat looked for work with horses. He eventually found a job working for a local noble, running his stable. While this took up most of his time Mat still found moments to go drinking, gamble and chase the occasional barmaid. One evening he was gambling and found himself entertaining a woman that seemed to be a well off merchant in her own right. After a night of wine and dice, along with a bit of lively dancing, the two woke in Mat’s small rooms at the palace, just off the stable. This was when Mat realized that the woman he’d taken for a merchant was in fact the daughter of another noble, who was seeking to wed her to his employer’s eldest son. He worked his days away hoping that nobody would notice his transgression but the day after the nobles were wed the guards brought Mat to speak with the lord of the palace. Mat tried to explain that he’d not known, that the young lady had not given her true name, but nothing he said would spare him. The guards took him, and his horse out to the countryside to hang him. Mat woke unexpectedly on the ground, the guards around him dead and bleeding into the sandy ground and his neck burning as if on fire. A man was striding away from him and called back over his shoulder “Stupid humans, always killing one another for imagined slights. Be more careful who you bed in future.” Mat would never learn the man’s name, nor what he’d meant speaking as if he wasn’t a human himself, but he gathered his horse, and everything of value from the guards and rode east. Years later Mat stopped moving east, but only because he’d arrived in a budding paradise, Tokyo. The people here were kind, straightforward, and they played some very interesting games with tiles. Mat wore a black silk scarf at all times to hide the mark the noose had left, but other than that he adopted the local garb. He even learned to use a Naginata, every similar to the staff he was used to, with the exception of the short sword blade on the end of the weapon. Over the next few years Mat amassed a small fortune, a reputation for being very lucky at tiles, and even won a small plot of land outside the city where he set to raising and training horses. On the morning of his 30th birthday Mat was surprised when a representative of the Emperor arrived at his small farm and asked after buying a horse for the leader. Mat of course offered his best animal, a tall black gelding with a fine temper and a strong build, only behind his own mount, Pips. He gave the horse as a gift to the Emperor, because the honor of having a horse he’d raised and trained owned by the man would increase his fame exponentially. The representative said that the Emperor would want to see the horse in action, and asked that Mat bring it to the palace for a demonstration. Mat of course agreed. The following day he made the ride into the city, leading the Emperor’s horse and wearing his best clothes. He tied off his horse and took the gelding through its paces, leading it in circles and over small jumps, showing its speed and agility to those present and the emperor who sat atop a shaded platform just out of Mat’s view. When he’d run the horse through his paces the Emperor asked to see Mat’s own mount go through the same trials. Mat explained that the horse was the only thing left of his father, who he’d not seen in over 10 years, and that he couldn’t possibly part with the animal, but would happily take him through the trials for the Emperor’s enjoyment. Once that demonstration was complete it was clear that Mat’s horse was the better of the two, and with a wave of his hand the Emperor had the shade removed to reveal a child of no more than 10 years. He said that he would have Mat’s horse, and the man resisted, explaining again that he couldn’t part with the animal, that it held more value than anything else he owned. The Emperor nodded as if he understood, and that was when the blade when between Mat’s ribs. He looked down to see the tip of a Katana piercing his chest, blood dripping onto the ground. With his last words he cursed the child Emperor. As a Spirit Mat spent only a few hours as a spirit. He woke looking over his own body almost immediately after the life left him and saw the child Emperor attempting to mount Pips. As Mat had travelled here his mount had nearly been stolen twice, and as a precaution he’d trained the horse as one would a war horse. When the grooms held the animal for the Emperor to mount he reared and threw the young tyrant from the saddle. The first sight Mat had as a spirit was the death of the man that had ordered his own. Sweet irony. With nothing further holding him in this world the spirit that was Matthew Cauthon went on to the next world, and was born into the Rukon. In the Rukongai There were no horses here. Mat was displeased with this strange place that he’d thought may be heaven for a moment until he realised that there were no horses here. He didn’t believe the man when he’d been told at first, and after a couple years in the Rukongai wondering from district to district thinking that the more wealthy had simply kept them for themselves, he became increasingly disbelieving. How could this place be heaven without his only real joy? With that thought he cut a long wooden staff and gathered food and water before heading out to the countryside in search of a herd of wild ponies. Mat wondered for more than 100 years, exploring and looking in every nook and cranny of this world before he somehow came to be in the Rukon again. During his time away very little had changed but he had grown stronger. He decided to hire out his knowledge of this world as a mapwright, at least that way he could do something useful, and spent the next 500 years wandering far and wide within Seireitei, drawing maps and naming areas that had no name before he came to them. His maps sold for a pretty penny and it wasn’t long until he was flush with money whenever he returned from a trip. Mat never took on an apprentice, never traveled with a companion, but he almost always felt that there was someone with him. One night in the 9th District of the Rukon after far too much wine with a strange black cloaked man he voiced that concern. Immediately the bar was silent and the man roared about hating Shinigami and those like them. Unsure what to do Mat assured the man he had no idea what a Shinigami was, truthfully, and that he was a simple map maker. The ruffian attacked him and in the struggle Mat was forced to kill the man. That’s how he met his first Shinigami. A member of the 9th, some division tied to security and legal matters, came to the bar and interviewed him, matching his story with that of the other patrons. He explained that self defense is perfectly natural, but asked that Mat restrain himself in the future as it was unsightly for a recruit to kill a citizen of the Rukongai for any reason. Mat was confused and again explained that he was a simple map maker, and had no idea what the man was talking about. The incident blew over but it also peaked Mat’s curiosity. Over the next several years Mat made many more maps, seldom having to leave his small estate in the 5th District of the Rukongai due to the archives he’d amassed. Many of his requests could be taken care of by simply tracing over old maps to encompass the desired area. The man even made a large map for the Commander of the Seireitei’s forces. The man seemed confused when he delivered it himself, and even commented on his ability to even enter the Seireitei with all the strong Shinigami about. Mat simply shrugged and replied that it had never really bothered him, and he liked seeing that his customers were happy with his work. The man had laughed! As if anyone would have trouble with a simple walk. It was years later that Mat learned about reiatsu and pressures in the academy. Sitting in his own room, reading one of the books that had been brought by some enterprising soul, from the world of the living Mat was simply relaxing when a blaze started outside his window. He ran from the house, taking nothing, his wealth was in the banks afterall, and ran toward the Seireitei. Later he found out that something called an Arrancar had been in the area and lost control of her power, burning the homes and businesses of many thousands of people. That raised Mat’s ire. He remembered his death, the arrogance of that silly little child, and this reeked of the same. That very day he went to the Academy and submitted himself to testing in order to join the Gotei. Their forces defended this place from the likes of the Arrancar and he wasn’t about to sit around while someone imposed their will on another simply because they were stronger. Someone had to stand up and say that right was right, and wrong wrong, no matter the strength or influence of the people involved. Mat had died for lack of anyone to stand up and do that already, and he wasn’t going to stand by and watch while anyone else did. In the Academy Matthew excelled in training with weapons and was able to learn Shunpo, but his skill with kido was fairly lacking. His attempts at any kido that wasn't lightning based failed miserably and he nearly lost a finger at one point to a Shakaho. When he was approaching graduation, and only a few classes away, word spread into the Academy of the order to eliminate the Arrancar. This worried Matt, but no more than anyone else. Soon after further rumors began to circulate about well trusted Shinigami turning on the Gotei and even Captain's abandoning their positions. The Commander even disappeared. That was the last straw for Matt, he made the decision to drop out of the Academy and decided to simply hire out his services where they might be needed. Post Academy Matt went straight from the academy to the bank, taking the insurance money from the loss of his home, and a portion of his savings, he went to the country outside the Rukon districts and bought 80 acres of land. It didn't take long and there were trees planted, and a modest house built toward the back of the land, as far from the Seireitei as he could go without leaving his land. Matt can often be found here tending his orchards or working in his garden. He also makes his own wine from grape vines near the house and brandy from the apples that are grown in the orchard. On the property, near the house, there is a large barn with stalls that would allow it to be used as a stable, and even a penned in area for working horses. No matter how long its been without the creatures Matt wants to be ready to go back to his favorite past time in the case that some are discovered. Powers and Abilities Weapons Proficiency. - Mat has trained with various weapons and mastered the use of a short sword as well as the Naginata High Reiatsu pressure - Mat doesn't really care about reiatsu, or its use, but he has a large store of the energy Speedy - Mat was initially astounded that he could simply be somewhere else by exerting a bit of energy, but he quickly mastered the skill and is able to shunpo nearly as easy as breathing. He often will shunpo during conversations just to mess with the other party, when off duty. Meditation - Mat hates meditating, but he loves his inner world so he's mastered the ability to go there at any time. Melding - Matthew has a significant connection with his Zanpakuto and if he's able to meld his reiatsu with another person to a high enough degree then he is able to bring their consciousness into his inner world. This has some inherent dangers. The other person's mind is essentially separated from their body, and is viewed as a foreign presence by Mat's. If they remain long enough they can be separated from their own body permanently and when in Mat's inner world they are subject to his whims. Mat is generally a decent guy, so he doesn't take advantage of this and due to the focus required it cannot be used in combat. Zanpakutō Zanpakuto Spirit Matt has one Zanpakuto spirit that has two aspects. Each takes the form of a raven with three eyes. Whenever the spirit speaks both ravens can be heard speaking in time with each other, one with a low pitched male voice, and the other with a higher female voice. The effect can be rather disturbing. They are called Shouri and Otosu. Inner World Mat's inner world is his father's old horse farm. The thick woods cut the humble buildings off from the outside world and nearly a dozen fine horses can be seen on the grounds, running in pens and or grazing on the lush green grass. There is always a fire burning in the fireplace of the main house, and the scent of his mother's cooking is thick there. Mat's inner world truly is home. Ashandarei In the sealed state Mat's Zanpakuto is a simple short sword with a jet black blade and handle. The guard is in the form of two silver horseshoes meeting in line with the blade and there are two black ravens carved in the dark steel. The blade is wide and tall at the handle, making the guard more ornamental than useful as the blade extends past it, but the blade tapers to a point, with a swoopping angle. When in Shikai the handle of the blade grows out to 6 feet in the span of half of a second. This mirrors a thrust with a spear, and Mat usually makes that motion when releasing the blade to throw his opponent off because of how far away he is with a short sword and the simplicity of his release command. The black shaft of the spear is as tall as Mat himself bringing the weapon's total length to just over 8 feet when in Shikai. Release command: Time to roll the dice. Trickster's Spark Trickster’s spark is related to the constant electrical current that runs through Ashandarei when in its released state. If an attack strikes an opponent an electric shock is inflicted causing various effects. 1000 Spears Mat combines his mastery of the Naginata with his high speed and stabs the blade of his weapon at his opponent creating a wall of stabbing steel. The arc of the attack is from 60 degrees to 120 degrees, covering a total 60 degree arc out to 7 feet from Mat. Normally Mat would restrain his reiatsu when using this ability, making the cost medium and removing the effect of Trickster’s Spark, but if he doesn’t it would apply one hit from the passive on each hit of the blade, raising the cost to High. Statistics Trivia Optional. Quotes Optional. Category:Shinigami Category:Seireitei